4-H Name & Emblem Guidelines

The 4-H Name and Emblem are protected under federal statute Title 18, U.S. Code 707. This provides the 4-H Name and Emblem with the level of protection afforded other Federal marks, such as the Seal of the President of the United States. The 4-H Name and Emblem is intended to represent the ideals of the program with its focus on serving the educational needs and interests of 4-H youth.

Permission to Use 4-H Name and Emblem

If you are a 4-H member or volunteer, you are permitted to use the 4-H Name & Emblem once your program is chartered with the official 4-H Charter from 4-H National Headquarters at the Cooperative State Research, Education and Extension Service (CSREES), within the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA).

If you are a commercial vendor, private organization or any other entity, you need to contact either the local UNL Extension Office or the State 4-H Office to determine what steps you need to take for your use of the 4-H Name & Emblem. Anyone wishing to use the 4-H Name & Emblem in a way that does not specify a local or state program, should seek authorization to use the 4-H Name & Emblem from National 4-H Headquarters at USDA.

In all private and commercial use of the 4-H Emblem, the statement "18 USC 707" must legibly appear either to the right of the base of the stem or below the lower right leaf of the clover. In use internal to the Cooperative Extension System (all 4-H Youth Development programs and clubs duly given authorization to use the 4-H Name & Emblem) use of the statement is at the discretion of the State 4-H Program Leader, or for those uses that are multi-state, regional, or national in scope, at the discretion of National 4-H Headquarters.